Sea Scout Ship Orion hosted two guest cruises in July. On July 6 family members and guests boarded before 1800 for a dinner cruise down the Petaluma River. The crew refreshed their skills after not cruising the Orion for several weeks. The guests relaxed and chatted over dinner, returning to the Petaluma River at dusk.

The afternoon of July 13, Cub Scout Pack 333 boarded the Orion after a short cruise on B.O.B. Each Cub Scout checked his life jacket before embarking, and each Scout who wished got a chance to man the wheel. Thanks to the wind, several Cubs got to feel the salt stray on their faces, too. Cubs and their parents joined the crew for lunch aboard.

Orion officers and crew thank the guests for helping make our cruises fun and memorable.

By Doug

The Orion crew and parents were asked to assist the Compass Rose with their yearly fund raiser, the Petaluma Fair Parking Lot. Early on Wednesday morning (June 19) the Orion crew arrived at the Petaluma Fair grounds in their dungree uniforms and ready to work at the Petaluma Fair Parking Lot. It wasn't too long until the crew got the hang of things and was working as smoothly as the Compass Rose crew. The next night the Beach Boys were playing at the fair, and it seemed that the line of cars never ended. One scout said " Cars are like ants; there's never just one".

By The last day of the fair, Sunday, the crew was tired and our feet hurt. Each scout was asked to complete 40 hours of work during the run of the fair. Each Scout who completed the 40 hours of work gets all expenses paid for one year. The follow ing completed the hours of work: Nick, Doug, April, Jessica, Amanda, Eric, and Derek. We had a fun time and thank you to the Compass Rose for all the food and good company.

June 17 Douglas Butler, Jessica Cameron, Amanda Gonzalez, Derek Lockhart, and Eric Wahl, met at the Scout Hut for Junior Leadership Training. The class, taught by Skipper Sterling and Nick Rogers, included activities to help the Scouts with their leadership duties. Topics included how to use organization, body language, tone of voice, enthusiasm, and team building to meet group goals. The section on following directions found the Scouts making peanut butter sandwiches - with quite unpredictable results.

These Scouts are practicing their new skills in their new leadership positions. In June Douglas assumed the office of Boatswain Mate, Jessica and Derek are Crew Leaders, Amanda is Yeoman and Assistant Crew Leader, and Eric is Assistant Crew Leader. Congratulations to all of you! Good luck in your new duties.

Each Year the Orion crew participates in the Human Race in Santa Rosa. This activity provides community service as well as an opportunity for each Scout to pay his/her way on the summer long cruise. This year we earned over $600 for the unit. Two Scouts earned their cruise expenses, too. Congratulations to Amanda Gonzalez and Tristan Payne!

Old Salts' Regatta took place in Redwood City, a return to its place of origin. The cruise there was uneventful, even though it was a night cruise. We only had seven Scouts, not enough to compete in every event, but the seven had a good time anyway. The weekend looked like J.O. weekend, with visits from many junior officers and young adults who came to tell stories of bygone glories of previous regattas.

Ancient Mariner Regatta became an adventure. This was the 50^th anniversary of this regatta, so many additional activities were planned. Then the location was moved to Stockton, rather than the traditional Coast Guard Island. Our unit volunteered to begin clean-up of the Stockton base in March. The valiant and persistent members of that clean-up weekend deserve great praise because the job was immense. However, everyone fell-to will a right good will and did an excellent job.

Meanwhile, our Commodore Stan Sterling, as Regatta Operations Officer, spent months making sure food, equipment, all units, dignitaries, and ships arrived for the great Memorial Day weekend. He and Skipper Shellhorn of the Chaser even made a shower trailer!

Finally, the biggest regatta in the U.S. began; some of our Scouts arrived in cars, and the others cruised up the San Joquain River on the Compass Rose. After two days of competition, our Scouts did well and were quite proud of themselves. They earned a Schooner class award. Congratulations!

Our unit needs your help! There are several jobs that need to be done, and perhaps you are the one to help us out. Please consider the following list and volunteer your hours or days by calling committee chairman Ed Rogers at 528-7536.

We could use:

Rank Advancement Chairman

Coordinator for October's Bridge and

Ball

El Toro repair

Wheel bearing service - all trailers

Wash bunk canvas

Food runs for August cruise

Paint and repair transom on Orion

Paint floors and galley on Orion

Chairman for Pasta King dinner

Newsletter Chairman

Thank you for your services.

September 20 the Pasta King serves our annual fund raising dinner. We meet at the Santa Rosa Veterans' Memorial Building, which is provided by American Legion Post #21. We always have a great time serving and visiting our many friends. Each Scout is responsible for 20 tickets. See you there!

July 19-23 Orion cruises to San Francisco for another cruise and service project aboard the San Francisco Maritime Museum schooner-scow Alma. We have frequently provided service for the maritime museum, and they have always warmly welcomed our help. Besides that, it is fun. On Monday we will cruise to and explore Angel Island. Cost $40.

August 7-18 we do our long cruise on the Delta. We visit Westgate Landing, Old Sacramento, Brennan Island, Hog Back Island, and Lost Isle. Scouts and families who plan to go should already have received a packet of information. If you have not received this information, please contact Skipper Katherine Sterling at 528-6677 or 318-6677 immediately.

These trips require much planning and preparation, so the sooner we know your plans, the easier it is for everyone. Several of our Scouts have earned all summer cruise expenses through superior performance during fund raising activities. For new Scouts, costs are $100 for the 11 days.

A new Scout has joined the Orion: his name - Thailer Gountang. We also have two new adults in the unit, Kris Miller and Robert Fisher. Welcome!

On a sad note, Jenny Moll returned to Germany in June at the same time Jenny Berry moved back to Paso Robles. We will miss them both very much. Don't forget to write or e-mail.